Car-heater.



D.-R. SAUNDERS.

GAR HEATER.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 25, 1911.

Patented Oct. 1, 1912.

Ill-5 line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

DAVID SAUNDERS, OF COLUMBUS, MISSISSIPPI.

GAFPHEAIER.

4 Specification of Letters Patent. Application filed September 25, 1311. Serial No. 651,213. g Y

Patented Oct. 1,' 1912.

- To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, DAVID R. SAUNDERS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Columbus, Lowndes county, Mississippi, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Car-Heaters, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, in which Figure 1 is a vertical section taken through the center. of a car I body, which car is equipped with a heater of my improved construction. Fig. 2 is a vertical section taken through the center of my improved heater. Fig. 3 is a horizontal section taken on the My invention relates to a heater particularly intended for use in connection with railroad cars utilized for the shipment of fruits, vegetables and like perishable products during the cold seasons of the year. Ordinarily the refrigerator cars, which in the summer and warmer months are packed with'ice and utilized for shipment of goods that are perishable, are during cold weather used for shipment of fruits, vegetables, and the like from points in a mild climate to points in colder climates, and during the use of these cars in the colder months it is necessary to heat the interior of the cars in order to protect and preserve the products being transported.

The ordinary methods now practised for heating the interior of the cars is to run the cars onto a side track, at various stages during the shipping trip, and to place stoves and like heating devices within said cars, but such methods involve the expenditure of considerable time and labor on the part of railway emp1oyees, besides greatly delaying the shipping movements of the cars and their contents. p

I propose to overcome the objectionable features heretofore existing in the heating of cars, during the shipment of perishable goods in cold weather, by'equippingthe cars with heating devices which can be operated continuously while the car is in transit, and which will maintain a uniform de ee. of heat within the car, thereby preventing the contents of the car from becoming frozen during shipment.

My improved heating device is preferably located belowthe floor line of the car, and is arranged so that when in operation, a circulation of warm air is established, thus maintaining practically an even heat throughout the entire space within the car.

sists in certain novel features of construction and arrangement of parts hereinafter more fully described, and claimed.

Referring by numerals to the accompanying drawings, 1 designates the body of a car -which is of the type usually employed for shipping fruit, vegetables and like perishable goods, during the warmer months of the year, and my improved heating device is applied to -the floor of a'car, preferably at the point beneath one of the ice racks, and immediately adjacent one of the end walls of said car.

Formed in the floor of the car is an openendof .the outer shell or casing 3 of the heater. The lower end of this shell or casing is closed and located within the lower portion of said shell and fixed to the bottom thereof is a fire pot 4, one side of which is provided with a laterally projecting boxlike housing 5 whichextends to and com,- municates with an opening 6 formed in the lower portion of a wall'of said shell, and which opening is normally closed by a. hin ed door 7. 4

I ormed in' the bottom plate of the shell 3 are a series of perforations 8 for the purpose of admitting air to the fire pot, and arranged to slide on the underside of this bottom plate is a perforated draft plate 9. This draft plate 9 can be adjusted so that its perforations coincide with the perforations in the bottom plate, thus permitting air to enter the fire pot, and when desired, the plate can be shifted so as to out off this draft.

Located Within the fire pot 4, a short displate 10, adapted to support a. removable grate 11, in which the fire of my improved heater is formed.

12 designates an inner wall of the casing which is supported in any suitable manner within the shellor casing 3, and said inner wall, is smaller in diameter than the outer casing, thereby formin an annular space 13, between said-inner we 1 and the wall of the To the above purposes my invention coning 2, and seated therein is the open upper tance above the bottom plate is a perforated outer casing. The wall 12 terminates a short the lower distance above the bottomlplate of theouter' rmit the airwhich is casing in order to drawn downwardly through the annular space 13 to discharge into and pass upward tilll'fillgl'l the, space within said inner-wall S 6 Formed in the top of the firepot-4ris anchute extends upwardly along the side or end *1 wall of the car a suflicient distance to form an ample fuel magazine, and the upper end of said chute is provided with a hinged door 18. A screen or grate 19 is positioned on the car floor immediately over the casing 3 and wall 12- and the upper portion of the fuel chute extends through the center of this screen or grating.

. When my improved heater is equipped for service, chute 16 is filled with fuel preferably charcoal, and after a quantity of charcoal has been ignited within thegrate 11 and is in an incandescent state, said grate is inserted through the opening 6 and is-posi tioned on the perforated plate 10 within the fire pot. The slides 15 are now adjusted to regulate the discharge of charcoal" from the .lower end of the tube 16, and as the charcoal burns away within the grate 11 fresh charcoal from the chute 16 will discharge into 40, said grate 11 to supply "thefire therein; The

ashes resulting from the burning charcoal within the grate 11 will naturally gravitate through the openings in said grate, and will pass from thence downwardihrough the perforations in the plate 10 into the between said plate and the bottom plate of. the casing 3, and when. desired, these ashes may be removed by opening the door 7 and passing a suitable tool over the bottom plate" of the casing.

The air necessary to support the combustion of the charcoal within the grate 1 1' is admitted to the perforated draft plate 9 and perforations in the bottom plate of the cas-' ing 3. Wherecharcoal is used-as a fuel, the

products of. combustion resultingfrom the burning of the charcoal are comparatively small and said products of combustion es cape through the apertures in the bottomof the casing 3 and a certain proportion of- S id,

. tube16,and "escape throughthe crack-be products'of-combustion will rise through the neath the door 18 which, closes the upper of said-tube. 1 After afire has been started in the grate, the 'air aroiundw the fire pot 4 naturally beco es heated," and su'oh' "con-J lishe the heat generated within the fire pot and which hcat causes the air surrounding the 1 fire pot to rise, and the cold air discharging dition through the. space' within the wall 12 and passes from thence upwardly .into the space within the car. As this action continues, the'cold air within the car will naturally be forced to the bottom of the space within said car, and said cold air will be drawn downward through the annular space 13 between the wall 12 and wall of the casin53, owin tothe partial vacuum estabwit-hin t 6 lower end of the wall 3, by

beneath the lower end of the wall 12 strikes the fire pot, and is in turn heated and rises,

' thereby forming a continuous current which is maintained as lon as the fire is maintained within the fire pot. The cold air is drawn from its natural place at the bottom- -of the space within the car boddy, and, the

heated air rising in thecolumn elops no opposition to the free circulation of the air through the car and therefore the heated air will, within a very short time, be evenly distributed throughout the entire space in j the c'ar.-

A heating device of my improved construction is comparatively simple, can be op erated at very little cost and providesa simple means for effectually heating theentire space within a car, which is being utilized for carryinggoods which are liable to becomefrozen when shipped in cold weather.

Ordinarily the walls of refrigerator cars are insulated against the radiation of heat and cold, in order to maintaina comparatively even degree of temperature within said car, and for this reason my improved 1 heater is of particular advantage when com 1 bined'with an ordinary refrigerator car during the warmer months and-can remain in service during-the colder monthsbythe installation of one of the heaters and thus the vcar so equipped can'be maintained in "sew-1 during all seasonsof the year. I claim:

Q 1. -In a car heater, the combination? with an; outer cylindricalcasing communicating at itsupper: end with'the interior of the car andhaving aclosed bottom, of a combustion chamber formed in the lower' p ortion'of the casiug,.having ,no communication with the interior of said casing, the

bottom of said casing having perforations ppening into the combustion chamber, a removable .grate .within the combustion chamber, an inner cylindrical casing arranged within the outer." casing, the ends bfyvhich inner casing are ppen, the lower, portion of which inner casing surrounds the combustion chamber. a fuel chute lead} ing downwardthrough the inner casing and dischargipg into theucombustion chamber.

and a pair. ofpla'tes arranged toslide on top of the combustion-chamber, the forward ends of which plates enter the chute for controlling the discharge of fuel therethrough.

2. In a car heater of the class described, the combination with an outer cylindrical casing communicating at its upper end with the interior of the car and having a closed bottom, of a combustion chamber formed in the lower portion of said casing and having no communication with the interior of said casing, the bottom of said casing having perforations opening into the combustion chamber, a fuel chute leading downward through the center of the outer casing and discharging into the combustion chamber and a pair of oppositely disposed plates arranged for sliding movement on top of the combustion chamber, the inner ends of which plates are notched and project into the lower end of the fuel chute for controlling the passage of fuel therethrough.

3. In a car heater of the class described, the combination with an outer cylindrical casing communicating at its upper end with the interior of the car and having a closed bottom, of a combustion chamber formed in the lower portion of the casing, having no communication with the interior of said casing, the bottom of said casing having perforations opening into the combustion chamher, a perforated grate supported within the combustion chamber above the bottom of the casing, a fuel chute leading downwardly through the center of the outer casing and discharging into the perforated grate within the combustion chamber, apair of oppositely disposed plates arranged for sliding movement on top of the housing, the inner ends of which plate are notched and project into the lower end of the fuel chute for controlling the passage of fuel therethrough, and a cylindrical wall supported within the outer casing so as to form annular spaces between said wall, the outer casing and the fuel chute.

4:. In a car heater of the class described, the combination with an outer cylindrical casing communicating at its upper end with the interior of the car and having a closed bottom, of a combustion chamber formed in the lower portion of the casing, having no communication with the interior of said casing, the bottom of said casing having perforations opening into the combustion chamber, a fuel chute leading downwardly through the center of the outer casing and discharging into the combustion chamber, a pair of independently adjustable oppositely disposed plates arranged for sliding movement on top of the combustion chamber, the inner ends of which plates are notched and project into the lower end of the fuel chute for cont-rolling the passage of fuel therethrough, a cylindrical wall supported within the outer casing soas to form annular spaces between said wall, the outer casing and the fuel chute, and the lower portion of which wall partially incloses the combustion chamber in the bottom of the outer casing.

5. In a car heater of the class described, an outer cylindrical casing communicating at its upper end with the interior of the car and having a closed bottom, a combustion chamber formed in the lower portion of the casing, having no communication with the interior of said casing, the bottom of said casing having perforations opening into the combustion chamber, a damper arranged to slide on the bottom of the casing for closing the perforations therein, there being an opening through the Wall of the outer casing K into the combustion chamber, a door nor-' M. P. SMITH, Jnssm CLARK. 

